


Bold Strokes

by LordSaladBar



Category: The Half of It
Genre: 2029, 5 Year Anniversary, Aliens, Bold Strokes, Comedy, ElliSter - Freeform, Ellie and Aster are nervous dorks, F/F, Fluff, Shenanigans, Stargazing, Swearing, Tickles, Warning: it caused my friends to cry, in the future, mentions of abuse, mentions of bullying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-01
Updated: 2020-05-01
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:13:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23758915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LordSaladBar/pseuds/LordSaladBar
Summary: “C’mon, please?” she pleaded with her best “puppy dog” eyes, but she still refused to give in. “If you won’t tell me maybe I should ask the aliens.”“Oh no… please don’t.” her voice was low and pleading. Although she knew by now there was nothing she could do to stop it.OrIt's Ellie and Aster's 5 year anniversary and it's certainly one to remember...
Relationships: Aster Flores/Ellie Chu, ElliSter, Ellie Chu/Aster Flores
Comments: 36
Kudos: 480





	Bold Strokes

**Author's Note:**

> I am scheduling this post before the movie has come out, but I have read the script. They may have changed a few things so I'm sorry if I have some information wrong. 
> 
> Enjoy :)

Ellie never liked being alone outside at night. She’d had bad experiences in her middle school years. The night was always quiet, but that only fed her anxiety. “I can’t believe I agreed on this place for our date,” she muttered under her breath.

Today was the day of her and Aster’s five year anniversary since they became an official couple. They had agreed to meet each other at Hornhill in Squahamish park since they had both come home to visit their families. Ellie’s mom had always taught her to be early, so unintentionally she arrived 5 minutes before the agreed time.

Ellie picked up her phone to see that it was currently 8:57, so even though it was summer the sun already set and the world was already asleep. The only existence of light in the park were the glimmering stars in the sky. Why there were no lampposts in a park, she could only assume it was to save money.

The lack of light made it easy for anyone to sneak up behind her for attack or even kidnapping. That thought stuck to the back of her mind and she couldn’t help herself checking her surroundings every 10 seconds. She wished she could just focus on how beautiful the stars looked, but she couldn’t help her feeling of paranoia. The noises of nocturnal animals certainly didn’t help ease her worries.

She decided to turn to her thoughts to distract her. She thought of everything that brought her here. All the good times and the bad times. All the fun times and the sad times. Thinking of this calmed her and made her forget all about her surroundings.

Ellie sighed in relief when her phone finally turned 9:00, Aster should be arriving soon. She’d be bringing candles to light up the night, so they’d be able to get on with their date. After a few moments, her feelings of relief and happiness were joined by fear. As time went on the fear began to take over all the other emotions. Time seemed to slow down, seconds felt like minutes and minutes felt like hours.

What if something happened to her?

What if this is it and after 5 years she realized that I’m not who she wants?

The thoughts kept piling into her head. This didn’t seem any better than the paranoia. They drew her further into her mind and she felt herself drifting away from reality. She was becoming less and less aware of her surroundings until all she could focus on was...

Thought,

After thought,

After thought…

“BOO!” the yell came as a pair of hands grasped her shoulders. She jumped and screamed like the world was ending. Could someone be trying to kidnap her? They couldn’t be the dumb kids from 8th grade, right? Before she knew anything more she began kicking at her surroundings.

“Hey, Hey, it’s me Aster.” the girl, now recognized as her girlfriend, said turning her flashlight towards herself as proof. The worry and guilt were evident on her face. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you that badly,” she said, taking a seat next to Ellie on the dry and crumbly grass.

Ellie wanted to respond, but she couldn’t stop herself from shaking and she’d fumble her words if she tried. Aster took notice of this and asked, “Are you okay?”

Ellie took a few moments to finally respond, “I’m a little scared of this place.” This surprised Aster since Ellie agreed on the plan.

“Why didn’t you say something when we were discussing the date?” she asked while she rummaged through her backpack.

“I didn’t want to ruin our date, I wanted it to be perfect for you. It is our anniversary after all,” she said in almost a whisper.

Aster could only chuckle as she pulled out 2 candles and a lighter, “It didn’t matter where we met, I just wanted to spend time with you, so we could celebrate.” Ellie’s face was flooded with heat and her cheeks looked like cherries.

All she could do was sit there surprised. Aster noticed her expression once she finished lighting the candles. “Don’t look so surprised,” she chuckled, giving the confused girl a small kiss on the cheek.

Time passed in silence as they stared up at the night sky. The stars glimmered in the sky like decorations on a Christmas tree. Ellie always found comfort in the stars because they had a sense of consistency. For this reason, the stars always intrigued her. They were there every night when she felt lonely and they were always there for her.

Ellie remembered a time when she used to come up here with her mom and they’d read all about the stars. She continued coming up here even when her mom died, it just wasn’t the same without her.

The silence was making Ellie mad and it didn’t seem like Aster was gonna speak up so she took the chance to, “Y’know I wasn’t always afraid of the dark. I used to come up here with my mom before she died.” This caught the other girl’s attention, she wanted to learn more. She knew that Ellie’s mother died when she was very young, but nothing more. She never wanted to push on hoping that Ellie would trust her enough to say it on her own.

“Really?” she asked, resting her head on the stargazer’s shoulder.

Ellie paused for a second pushing her glasses back into place before continuing, “Yeah, I actually used to come up here every night. I would read about the stars with my mom and dad. We’d even have our own mini space adventure.” Aster couldn’t help but chuckle at that part, causing a smile to form on the other girl’s face.

“What did you do, fight aliens and save planet earth?” she asked through small giggles. “Oooh, or did you fight evil humans and save alien colonies?”

Ellie looked on trying to hold down a smile, “Yeah, I’m not telling.” Aster gave a joking pout looking up at her girlfriend.

“C’mon, please?” she pleaded with her best “puppy dog” eyes, but she still refused to give in. “If you won’t tell me maybe I should ask the aliens.”

“Oh no… please don’t.” her voice was low and pleading. Although she knew by now there was nothing she could do to stop it.

Aster stood up and brought her sight to the stars. She put her hands to the sides of her face and yelled, “Hello, aliens? I have one of your old pals here, Ellie Chu.” She looked ridiculous yelling up at the stars expecting an answer. So ridiculous in fact that Ellie’s smile widened as she watched her girlfriend yelling for her old imaginary pals to come back.

“I hear she has a past with you space folk and I would like to know all of the stories of when she was a young little spacegirl.” She moves her hands to her sides and raises them in the air. “Please o’ great aliens of the sky, let my dance move you and persuade you into coming down upon us and sharing your brilliant stories.”

Ellie watches as she begins to twirl around, dancing to music only present inside her head. She watches as Aster twirls her way over to her position and offers her hand. The stargazer wastes no time and grasps her girlfriend’s hand. She is then hoisted up onto her feet and they begin to dance. They didn’t need music as they moved to the rhythm of their heartbeats.

They held each other as their bodies drifted through the grass. Their eyes never leaving the other’s gaze and smiles never leaving their faces.

\----------------------

After several moments of dancing, they sat back down and Aster rested her head back onto Ellie’s shoulder. They got back into a comfortable position before the story picked back up.

“After my mom died, my dad stopped going with me, so I came alone. Then, when I was in 8th grade there was this kid named Dylan Kramer that I partnered up with. Our project was to write a report on something we both like. It was more of a “get to know you” project.”

“We both agreed on astronomy. I remember I was excited to find someone with the same interests as me and we made an excellent team. When we presented all the kids just laughed at us.” Ellie paused a small pain emerging in her chest as she remembered that day.

Aster wrapped her arms around her for comfort and Ellie could feel the pain lifting as warmth replaced it. She sat there for a little gathering up her strength to continue.

“At first I didn’t care because I finally found a friend, someone who understood me. He was the first one since my mom died.” She felt herself shudder at those words. She never really talked about it with anyone, but her mother’s death took a real toll on her.

She was sure Aster noticed her distress when she felt the girl squeeze her harder. “When I returned to school the next day, there were many people who still laughed at me. I took it in and ignored it as I went to find Dylan.”

“When I found him, he began laughing at me and calling me names. He called me things like four eyes and a window face. I walked up to him to sort things out and when he saw me he only snickered.”

“I remember asking him what happened and trying to remind him of the night we shared. He looked down upon me with disgust when he told me he’d remembered watching my 'nerdgasm' over the stars when we did our project. His friends all laughed along with him while I was left crying there. Running towards the bathroom and not being able to leave until the last bell.”

“That asshole!” Aster interjected.

“Yeah…” Ellie replied in a quiet and somber tone.

“Hey, look at me.” the other girl said moving Ellie’s face to look into her eyes. A soft and understanding smile clear on her lips. “That bully doesn’t know what he’s missing out on because YOU are an amazing and beautiful person.” She couldn’t hold down the blush rushing to her cheeks when she heard those words.

A small silence passed between them until Ellie began her story again. “At the end of the school day, I tried my best to get out of school unseen. I thought I was doing good until I got to my locker.”

“He was waiting for me at my locker. I tried my best to ignore it as I got my books and placed them in my bag. Closing my locker, I went to leave so I could go home and process everything.”

“I got a good distance away and I thought I was out of the woods, but Dylan… he grabbed my arm. His grip was strong enough to break my arm in one move. I tried to pull my arm away, but he pulled me back and slammed me into my locker. My glasses shattered at the impact and the shards cut my face.”

“I remember seeing fear in his eyes like he didn’t quite know what he was doing, but he continued anyway. He pushed me to the ground and gave me kick, after kick to my ribs. He didn’t stop until he heard a teacher coming. He didn’t want to get in trouble, so he pulled me up and told me if I didn’t keep quiet worse would be coming.”

“Let’s send that Shithead to the aliens and let them dissect his brain.”

“They’d probably find nothing but porn and football. He didn’t have much else he was interested in,” she said with a small chuckle.

“Yeah, we don’t want them getting the wrong idea about the human race. After all, we’re not all douchebags like that bully Dylan and his flock of fucking losers.”

“Oh I don’t know sometimes you can be-”

Immediately Aster’s attention was drawn,” I can be what?” Anger was growing inside of her and she didn’t know if she’d be able to hold it in.

Aster’s challenge was scary, but Ellie wasn’t backing down,” Y’know you can be a little… weird.” A smirk grew on her lips when she saw the joking hurt on her girlfriend’s face.

“Huh-uh, oh I’M weird?” She threw her hands into Ellie’s side and began tickling. She tickled harder and harder until eventually, the other girl began to crack. She burst out laughing and tried to push her attacker away, but Aster wouldn’t give up.

“Ahaha, ah, please stop… I can’t-aha... I can’t handle it.” She pleaded and begged for mercy that wouldn’t come.

“Nuh-uh, you’re not getting out of this. You are gonna feel my wrath! Mwahahaha.” Too bad for her, Aster made a fatal mistake. She stopped her attack to give out an evil laugh and her enemy had a strategy as well.

Aster’s face grew confused when she heard Ellie giving a mischievous laugh. She returned her sights to her girlfriend to see her preparing an attack of her own. It was at this moment Aster realized she FUCKED up.

Before she could speak, Ellie sprung her hands forward and The Tickle War of 2029 began. She was struggling at the beginning, but now she had the advantage. She felt triumphant and celebrated herself in battle. What she failed to realize was that Aster was immune to her attacks.

As they say, don’t celebrate your tickles before they give out giggles. Aster spared no time bringing in the cavalry with her tickle attack. Instead of going for her sides like last time, she went for the stomach. She was able to successfully catch her enemy off-guard.

Through laughs, Ellie yells, “What the fuck, are you immune to tickles?” Aster only smiles deviously in response as she continues her attack. The attack goes on for several seconds before Ellie begins pleading for an end to the attack.

“The only way I’ll stop is if you surrender and give me a kiss!”

“There is no way in hell I am surrendering to you and your terrifying ways. I will carry on for as long as I need!”

Aster gives a challenging smirk, “Oh really even if I do THIS…” She removes her hands from her enemy’s stomach and makes a rush for her feet. Just like Achilles’ story says, the foot is one of the biggest, most ticklish, weak spots of the human body. Aster stares at her accomplishment and then brings her gaze to the mortified face of her enemy.

“You wouldn’t!”

“Desperate times call for desperate measures. I will get you to surrender and receive my victory kiss.” At that, she began her tickling with the worst attack in the book of tickles. She went for the heel and made her way up towards the toes. Ellie was rolling over in laughter and pain. She couldn’t bear this much longer, but she had to win.

Suddenly it clicked in her mind, she knew exactly what to do. She made up her plan and got every detail engraved in her brain. This would be the turning of the tides, the greatest plan since The Tickle War of 1977.

When Aster had slowed down on her tickles, Ellie decided to work her plan. She reached for her attacker’s coat pocket and grasped the keys to Aster’s car. She used her strength to throw the keys as far as she could.

Aster looked up to see the keys only a few feet away, “You missed the edge of the hill. You won’t be able to push me off today.” She began her short walk towards the keys. What she didn’t realize was Ellie was getting into a frog-like position.

When Aster turned around after picking up her keys, Ellie sprung forward. She flew right into her girlfriend. Before Aster knew any better she was tumbling down the hill with Ellie falling beside her.

Luckily, this side of the hill didn’t end with a lake at the bottom, or they would have been soaked. When they had finished their fall, Aster checked to make sure she still had her keys. She then looked to the other girl who was currently rubbing her head.

“Seriously? That was your plan. Wow, you really didn’t want to lose.” Aster couldn’t be mad when she looked into the hilariously devilish eyes of her girlfriend.

“Yeah, and it looks like I won.”

“If you hadn’t noticed we both took a tumble down the hill. How does that make you the winner?”

“Well, it was my idea and I wasn’t the one who fell for the trick,” she said with a big grin as she pushed her surprisingly unbroken glasses back into place. Aster picked herself up and walked over to Ellie, giving out her hand to help. She accepts reluctantly before walking back a little and crossing her arms around her chest.

“Now, you owe me my reward for winning.”

“I remember telling you what I wanted, but you never told me what you wanted.”

“I want you to read me that letter you told me about.”

Aster froze, she didn’t expect her girlfriend to even remember it since she brought it up two years ago on their three year anniversary. Of course, she had brought it with her, she just didn’t expect to be giving it out today.

Ellie took notice of her silence and asked, “What’s wrong?” Aster was shaken from her thoughts. She didn’t want to worry her, but she also didn’t want to tell her the reason she was so scared.

“Well, it’s in my bag and that’s on the top of the hill you pushed me down. Maybe we should just forget about it.” Ellie gave her a suspicious glance and walked toward her.

“Nope, you can’t get out of this that easily. We’re gonna have to go up there to retrieve our things and get to your car anyway. Let’s just walk up now.” She began her way up the hill and Aster soon joined her.

All she could think about was the letter. She worried about Ellie’s reaction. They had been dating for five years but is it the right time? She tried her best to mask her uneasiness on the walk up. Except Ellie knew her too well and she began to grow concerned.

“What’s even on that letter, you look scared to death?”

“Oh, it’s nothing important just a little something I wrote.”

“Really? You’ve been waiting two years to give me this and you’re saying it isn’t important. That seems a little fishy to me.” Dammit, she definitely remembered. Aster only felt more nervous as she tried to formulate a response.

“I wouldn’t be giving it to you now if you hadn’t asked for it.”

“If you didn’t plan on giving it to me then why did you bring it with you?”

Aster’s anxiety had taken over and instead of speaking to her girlfriend, she sped up. She really wished that she could be anywhere but here right now.

Ellie was more confused than ever, her girlfriend seemed very nervous about this letter. Her thoughts began to wander again…

What could be in that letter?

Does she want to take a break from me?

Does she want to break up?

Her thoughts got worse as she neared the top of the hill. When she had finally reached the top she was just as nervous as Aster. She walked back over to the candles and took a seat, while the other girl retrieved the letter from her bag.

Aster presented the letter and continued to stand in front of Ellie. She stared at it for a few seconds before taking it from Aster’s hands.

Here we go.

She opened the letter and began to read…

_Dear Ellie Chu,_  
_Before I met you, I was lost at sea, drifting mindlessly with everyone else. I followed the paths my “friends” paved for me and I never made my own decisions. Before I knew it, my life wasn’t mine anymore, I had lost what made me special. I was one of many and I never thought I’d be anything more._  
_Then you and your letters came along, you showed me that I shouldn’t hide behind some silly mask. I should be out there making my boldest strokes in life. You gave me the chance to pave my own path, a chance to take my life back._  
_You did all this without even knowing me, you did it all for a complete stranger. A pretty face that no one could see behind, but you did. You didn’t see what I was molded to be, you saw the real me. The one I thought I had hidden perfectly. With you, I could just be me._  
_Without you, I’d still be drifting surrounded but still alone. With a life full of purpose that wasn’t mine._  
_Someone once told me “Love is messy and horrible and selfish and bold.” At first, I didn’t understand them and I didn’t even know if they were right or not. But now I see it, with you, I finally get all of it._  
_We don’t have a perfect relationship and that’s okay with me. We have our ups and downs but through it all, I know that I wouldn’t want to be with anyone else. We’re not perfect, we’re messy._  
_Ellie, I want all of you. Not just a small part of your heart. I’m selfish and I can’t help it, it’s how you make me feel._  
_You give me the strength and courage to be who I am, to make my boldest stroke. I remember when you first left and I told you in a few years I’d be sure. That I’d be SO sure. Now, I know I am._  
_Which is why I have to ask…_

The letter ended there, leaving Ellie confused. She turned it over in hopes it would continue on the second page. All she found were two words.

_Look Up_

When Ellie glanced upwards, she almost dropped the letter in her hands. Her eyes widened as tears began to drip down her cheeks. Aster was down on one knee with tears spilling from her eyes.

”Aster… w-what is…” She was speechless, every word she imagined saying was gone in an instant.

“I love you with my whole heart and I want to share everything with you. My accomplishments, my failures, my imperfections, my anxieties, and my deepest fears. Most importantly, I want to share my love with you.”

Ellie watched speechless as Aster pulled out a small box and held it carefully between her hands. Opening it she said, “Ellie Kim Chu, will you be my boldest stroke?”

Ellie was overtaken with emotions, she couldn’t move or speak. She sat there staring as her eyes continued to flood with tears.

Aster’s face fell when no answer came, and she immediately stood back up. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t ha-”

“I would love to be” The words were silent, but they boomed loud in Aster’s head.

“Really?” She was dumbfounded and sniffling among her tears.

Ellie sprang forward wrapping her arms around Aster’s neck, “Yes, of course. I’d want nothing more!” They looked into each other’s eyes and began laughing through their tears. “Now are you gonna put that ring on my finger?” she asked.

Aster almost jumped remembering the ring in her hands. At this time Ellie was finally able to get a good look at it. It was a rose gold ring base with a silver flower that held a diamond in the center. The diamond shimmered in the moonlight and it took all of Ellie’s strength not to scream as Aster placed the ring upon her finger.

Aster’s fingers lingered on the ring and Ellie’s hand,” Y’know in the movies, they would be kissing by now.”

Ellie chuckled,” Is this your way of politely asking for a kiss?” Aster only looked up at her with puppy dog eyes. Ellie responded with a nod of the head. Aster brought her hands up cupping her fiance’s face.

When she could wait no longer, Aster leaned in and her lips clashed with Ellie’s. The feeling of their lips together made Ellie feel safe and secure, and Aster felt the same way. Aster’s lips tasted like cherries and Ellie never wanted to forget the taste or the feeling of being kissed by her.

When they separated, Ellie went for a hug, placing her chin on her fiance's shoulder. “I love you” she whispered into Aster’s neck. She responded by wrapping her arms tightly around her body and kissing the top of her head.

Then, she lowered her head down to Ellie’s right ear and whispered, “I love you too.” They stood there living in each other’s warmth. Afterward, they enjoyed a nice picnic under the stars. Both of them couldn’t stop smiling all night.

Before Ellie had met Aster, she was lonely and independent. She lacked a friend, someone who would listen to her problems and help her through them. Before Aster had met Ellie, she lacked the confidence to step out of what she was raised to believe. She lacked a real friend, someone who wouldn’t try to change her, but accept and celebrate her.

They both found what they needed in each other, they both found a family.

**Author's Note:**

> Writing that letter was one of the hardest things to do and with two people watching while I worked it was a little stressful. That's all behind me now and I only have about 50 more ideas for this series. Til' then, see ya! :)


End file.
